Definitely Happy
by SMRyan
Summary: Hermione was happy, definitely happy... / Incomplete - Multiple Chapters
1. Chapter 1

Hermione couldn't remember the last time everything was this quiet, for a moment she had wondered if she'd gone deaf, but from the soft sound of her husband in the shower and the slow bubbling of the kettle boiling next to her, she seriously doubted it. With a sigh, she closed her eyes and leaned against the marble kitchen counter, her hands coming up to rub at her aching temples, the slight tingle of a headache itching to come out as if it knew she was in for a stressful morning. She was pulled from her moment of relaxation by the click of the kettle turning itself off, she checked the clock on the far wall and took a note of how long she had left, making it at least an hour before she had to get everybody into the car and on their way. She could hear him coming down the stairs after his shower, the wooden creaks leaving nothing to the imagination as they made a sound with every step. She didn't move or turn around as she heard him getting closer, the sounds he made as he rolled his shoulders and ruffled his drying hair caused a feeling of safe familiarity to wash over her and as she stirred her tea, pouring in her milk in small instalments as he neared her. She smelt him before he touched her, his manly body wash mixed in with her floral shampoo overwhelmed her and she crinkled her nose as his hands snaked around her waist from behind. She didn't react to this, waiting for him to grumble out his morning greeting before she said hers.

"Good morning." He whispered his voice croaky and full of the sleep he hadn't gotten rid of before coming downstairs to join her.

"Morning, Ron. Would you like some coffee?"

She patted his arms, before taking a step towards the cupboard holding the mugs, but his arms had tightened around her and she stopped her movements.

"Nah, I'd rather stay like this for a bit before Rose wakes up." He finished by kissing her gently on the neck, something which used to drive her mad, but recently it caused her to cringe inwardly instead, she didn't know why.

With a sigh, she let him cuddle her, wrapping her arms over his to reciprocate his affections, but all she could think about was her tea getting cold and after only two minutes of closeness she squirmed in his arms, turning to face him, her hands resting on his chest.

"As much fun as this is, I have to have this caffeine injection, make sure her uniform is washed, double check she has everything in her trunk and grab a shower, we can't dawdle, especially on such an important day." Her voice was soft and stern as looked into his eyes, her brows raised. "Now go and get Rose out of her pit, she can't miss her first day of Hogwarts because you want to cuddle." She curved the corner of her lips upwards at the end, glad when Ron loosened his arms from around her and allowed her to finally reach her cup of tea. She picked it up with a happy sigh as she heard Ron pad out of the room, an image of his put out face playing in the front of her mind as she guiltily sipped on her tea.

She rinsed out the now empty mug of tea sadly in the sink, already knowing that it would not be enough caffeine for the day and kicking herself for not liking coffee. She moved towards the garage door, happy that on a cold December day she could access it through the kitchen. A washing basket in hand she began to pull her daughters remaining uniform and everyday clothes from the tumble dryer. She could hear the young pair of legs running around upstairs, clearly being chased by bigger ones as Ron's voice could be heard urging his daughter to hurry up and grab a shower so Hermione herself could. She smiled fondly to herself as she closed the garage door behind her, walking towards her daughter's room with her remaining clothes, eager to put them into the trunk and have one more thing on her to do list complete.

She opened Rose's room without knocking, knowing she wasn't in there a moved swiftly towards the open trunk at the bottom of the bed and with slow care she started folding her clothes, taking time to look around her daughters messy room as a sense of loss hit her stomach. The room itself was a horrible shade of yellow that Rose had picked out when she was 6, it was far too bright and eventually Hermione had to get out her wand and magically stick a few purple and pink flowers around just so it didn't look so odd, which got her an excited laugh from the young girl who was still mesmerised by the magic she would one day be able to do, almost convincing her mother to hand over her wand with her puppy dog eyes. Like Hermione, Rose had an incredibly fondness for books and reading, with one wall of her room stuffed high with books. Her white-wood framed single bed was pushed to the opposite side, recently free from the insane amount of teddy bears that once covered it, Rose deciding after she'd gotten her Hogwarts letter that she was 'too grown up' for these sort of things, but Hermione knew that she had kept a few of them and that they were hidden under her quilt, one even shoved into the bottom of her trunk to take with her. The one thing Hermione knew her daughter didn't get from herself or her father was her love of art, she was terrible at art growing up, unable to draw even a stick man, but somehow rose had developed a talent for it, one which she knew wasn't going to go away anytime soon.

Hermione sat down on her daughter's bed for a brief moment, her hand brushing over the lilac quilted bedding as she looked back on all the memories she shared with her family in here, she could remember as if it was yesterday when her and Rom had first brought Rose home, this room was a hastily put together nursery that she and him had evolved with time and love as they brought up their daughter. Love, Merlin she used to be so in love.

Her thoughts drifted off as she felt a single tear roll down her tear, hastily brushing it away she stood up and reached into her back pocket, pulling out a moving photo of herself, Rose and Ron from New Years, they were at the Burrow watching the fireworks when Ron came bounding over with Rose in his arms, the little girl yelling that she wanted a picture of them and had roped Auntie Ginny into taking it. The shot itself was beautiful, Ron had gotten 'cheese' and yelled out 'sneeze', which caused Hermione to laugh in the most genuine way she had all night, looking towards her little family with humour in her eyes in their group huddle. That was the night when she'd realised something had changed between her and Ron, he'd kissed her when the clock had struck twelve on her request and the fireworks were the only thing with a spark, Ron's wet, soppy kisses causing nothing but an empty fluttering in her chest. She heard the shower turning off and hurried to stuff the photograph into the trunk, turning as Rose walked into the room with her fluffy blue dressing gown on, one which was clearly too big. She didn't seem too bothered about her mother's presence in her room, walking over to her wardrobe to pick out her travelling clothes.

"Rose, Darling, does daddy know you've stolen his dressing gown?" She asked amused.

Rose simply shook her head with a knowing smile and shrugged.

"Mines all packed and he's dressed anyway, well he was dressed when he started chasing me around this morning."

Hermione moved to her daughter and kissed her lightly on the head, her one arm coming to wrap around her daughters shoulders as the other held onto the now empty laundry basket.

"You are silly, now get dressed and I'll dry your hair okay? We're running a bit late, so I'm going to hop in the shower now and I expect you at my door in no more than ten minutes, okay?" She looked down sternly, before kissing the top of her head once more, satisfied by Rose's answer of a nod of her small head.


	2. Chapter 2

Hermione huffed slightly, blowing a lose strand of hair from her face as she tried her last idea to close the trunk by sitting on it awkwardly while she tried to lock the latch, it was clearly overstuffed and her overly stubborn side had almost made her forget that she was a witch and if she could make a purse contain everything but the kitchen sink, she could clearly make it so that all of her daughters things would fit into one stupid trunk. She stood up, mentally kicking herself and reached into her back pocket, pulling out her wand and holding it pointed at the annoying inanimate objects in front of her, her eyes narrowing in frustration.

"If you won't fit, I'll make you fit!" She mumbled to herself, but before she could utter a spell, she heard a small giggling from behind her, already knowing who it was without even needing to turn around, smirking to herself.

"You stay there, missy. Mummy is just raging a war against your things." She laughed, moving her hand in practised motions and muttering the necessary spell, watching as the larger objects in the trunk shrank to a reasonable size and the lid closed with a satisfying click. After a few moments basking in her smugness, she ran her fingers through her messy hair then let her arm drop to her side, immediately feeling a tiny pair of hands grip onto it as tight as they could. She looked down just long enough to catch the wonder in her daughter's eyes as her wand hand flicked and the charm changed, shrinking it so it could easily be placed into her coat pocket.

"Daddy says he's ready." Rose said, her eyes never leaving Hermione's wand.

"Are you ready?" Hermione asked dropping to her knees so she was now face to face with her daughter, her eyes looking worriedly over her small features. A small, but loud part of Hermione worried that she would forget what this would look like, her daughter happy in her room, no troubles of war and Voldemort for her kin to be afraid of. She only had herself to concentrate on, her teenage experiences and hopefully her school work, Hermione hoped.

She watched as Rose looked deep in thought over her answer, tapping her chin with her tiny forefinger before giggling.

"I'm ready!"

Hermione laughed, rolling her eyes and zipped up Rose's beige winter coat, her hands brushing down the faux fur collar, before she brought her arm up to brush away some left over crumbs from her daughters messy toast breakfast.

"Such a mucky pup, come on!" She pushed on her knees and stood up and holding her hand out for Rose to take a hold of; the little girl couldn't resist taking a glance over her shoulder at her childhood bedroom, willing it wouldn't change while she was gone.

…

Hermione gripped Rose's hand tight as they neared the platform entrance, the familiar numbers mocking her in a way as the countdown to her daughter's departure began. Ron was a few steps behind them, but she had forgotten about him already, a feeling of anticipation washing over her as she stared at the space between platform 9 and 10.

She'd already explained the process to Rose the night before, the young girl much happier about the experience then Hermione herself was, already pulling her hesitant mother forward.

"Mum! Come on, we're going to be late." She was practically dragging Hermione by now, almost as if the woman had dug her heels into the concrete floor, something which she had thought about doing in a pathetic attempt to make her daughter late so that she wouldn't have to leave. She knew those thoughts were infantile, but the empty nest feeling she knew to be inevitable was driving her to think of every selfish idea she could dream of to keep her baby in her-their home.

She'd realised then that Ron wasn't with them, most likely dawdling behind, chatting with some work colleague or another. If she was honest, she wasn't missing him and she knew it was terrible to think such a thing, but it had been a long time since she'd itched to have him close to her, needing to hold his hand as they walked, or just to look at him with love in her eyes. She knew their marriage was based on security and familiarity, well on her part at least, but she was happy, wasn't she? She had everything she needed at thirty two, didn't she? She groaned inwardly at her inappropriate thoughts, she was supposed to be saying goodbye to her only child, not thinking about the lack of fulfilment in her marriage.

She shook her head and looked towards Rose, the small child's eyes pleading to her mother to hurry up and pass through the platforms entrance, her need to see the train growing wildly by the second. Hermione rolled her eyes at her daughter's enthusiasm and finally relented, her arm wrapping tightly around Rose's shoulders and her steps speeding up as they passed through the invisible barrier, separating the magic from the muggles.

The sight in front of Hermione caused a breath to hitch in her throat, the sights, smells and sounds were just as she remembered, nothing had changed and for a few brief moments she allowed herself to stare dumbly at the goings on around her. Family's around her, gripping their children for the last time, kissing them all over and whispering tearful goodbyes to the until recently, permanent figure in their lives. The older students were rolling their eyes at their sad parents, pretending to be embarrassed as they were pulled into crushing hugs. She smiled sadly at what would be her future with her little girl and she couldn't stop the tears prickling at her eyes from the thought. She squeezed her arm around Rose a bit tighter and heard the deep voice of Ron behind them.

"How are my two favourite girls?" He beamed his smile full of pride as his arms circled the two. Hermione didn't flinch or sink into his touch, simply sending a wistful smile back to him as they walked closely together towards the carriage doors, knowing he would take it as sadness with what was about to happen. She walked briskly with the two of them, her steps faulting when she noticed the back of a familiar mop of black hair.

"Harry!" She called over the bustle of noise, her close friend turning around immediately, his arms enclosing around the running woman, her own gripping the back of his coat tightly as her eyes closed. She hadn't seen Harry in over two months, his recent Auror duties sending him to New Zealand on assignment. After a solid minute of hugging, they loosened their grips and she found herself looking up to the sheepish Harry Potter, all grown up.

"How are you two, eh?" Harry asked, leaning past Hermione to pull Ron into an equally big hug.

"We are great, Harry. Just saying goodbye to this little one." Ron finished sadly, his hand resting gently on Rose's shoulder. Harry bent down to greet Rose and the three of them began a conversation, the contents of which Hermione didn't hear as a flash of red hair caught her eye and she was pulled into yet another hug by Ginny Weasley, or Potter as it was now.

"Ginny, are you are nervous as I am?" Hermione asked, her teeth moving to nibble on her bottom lip as she grasps her friends hands in her own.

"I'm bloody terrified, Hermione. What if he doesn't make any friends, or hates his classes? What if something happens and I'm not there to help him?" Ginny's voice raised a few octaves the longer she talked, the hysteria clear in her tone.

"You need to calm down." Hermione said sternly, her finger pointing accusingly towards her friend. "If I start worrying as bad as this, who will calm us both down?" She finished, a smirk twitching on her lips. Her words helped to change Ginny somewhat, the red head taking deep breaths, never breaking eye contact with Hermione.

Hermione looked around for the Potters son, unable to spot the hyper bundle of joy around either of his parents.

"Where's James?"

That seemed to snap Ginny out of her hyperventilation. Her thumb pointing behind her, showing the whereabouts of her son. Hermione looked over Ginny's shoulder and saw him then, his face currently being smothered with kisses from his grandmother, the sight causing Hermione to burst out in laughter.

"The poor boy, Rose is going to be jealous of all the affection."

"I think he secretly loves it." Ginny added, turning back to face Hermione. "I think we should rally the troops, before the train sets off without them." She finished sadly, nudging Hermione's arm before walking over to rescue her son.

Hermione watched Ginny walk away with an amused smile on her face, especially when James noticed his mother coming towards him and scrambled to her side for safety. She moved her line of vision back to her own little family, but her body stopped short, her brown eyes connecting with a mesmerising grey pair. She swallowed deeply as she realised who they belong to, Draco Malfoy was here, a beautiful woman stood next to him, immaculately put together in an outfit that cost more than Hermione would see in a year, her hair set without a hair out of place and her arms around a young boy, a child whose hair struck a striking similarity to Malfoy's. They stared at each other for what felt like minutes, but in reality was mere seconds, his eyes burning through her, turning her insides cold as he scrutinised her appearance, a hint of recognition flashed on his face, followed by a flaring of his nostrils and a setting of his jaw. He was the first to end the staring match, swishing his robes as he turned his back on Hermione, his focus now on his small family, leaving Hermione to let out a shuddering breath, not knowing how to react to seeing someone she used to despise.


	3. Chapter 3

Smoke poured from the top of the train as it readied to leave. The whistle blew loudly, but Hermione could not hear it through the noise of parents and family members all desperately yelling last goodbyes to their young children. Even the ones with older kin were still standing on their tip toes, their arms outstretched as far as they could reach as they waved until their arms became sore, Hermione included, her shoulder cramping, but her movements didn't cease, not until the image of her daughters tearful face had left her sight. Hermione let out a strangled sob as her heels touched the floor once more, her arm hung loose by her side, tingling as the blood rushed back to her fingers. She subconsciously flexed her hand, freezing momentarily when she felt her husband's familiar touch as he entwined their fingers in a show of reassurance as the feeling of loss hit them both.

She let him hold her hand, stealing as much comfort as she could from him as her eyes stayed glued to the retreating train. She felt numb, immediately a feeling as though something were missing hung over her head like a black cloud. When at last the train turned a corner and out of sight, Hermione's eyes lowered to the ground, quiet as Ron's thumb brushed over her skin. She didn't know what to do now, her house would be silent, her days wasted. She had no full time job, choosing to work small hours as a freelance researcher gave her a break from the everyday, but she had wanted to stay home with her child, wanted to be there for every milestone of her daughter's life and now those moments would no longer be seen by her and it felt almost wrong. Hogwarts was the best place for Rose, she knew that without a doubt, but she would miss her smiling face, miss the quirks and humour that created her child's personality. For the briefest moment, she squeezed her hand tightly onto Ron's, taking a deep breath through her nose, she lifted her head up one more and looked towards him. His eyebrows were furrowed, a look of concern flashed through his eyes as he watched his wife and a moment of understanding passed between the two. Hermione used her free hand and wiped away the drying tears from her cheeks. After finally turning her body away from the tracks, she realised she wasn't the only straggler left behind, she wasn't the only parent whose future home life now seemed so bleak.

She gave Ron an awkward smile and twitched her hand, subtly releasing it from his grasp. She was grateful for his comforting touch, but for some reason it didn't feel quite right. His palms were sweaty and his nails kept scratching at her skin, his hand kept moving as though it felt uncomfortable wrapped around hers and she knew he was thinking the same thing when he rubbed his hand down the front of his coat as he walked over to his parents, Harry and Ginny. Hermione watched the group for a while, the emotional hugs and welcoming smiles seemed to repeal her for now, she didn't want small talk and she didn't want pity or stories from the elder Weasley's own parental goodbyes. She wanted to be on her own, she wanted to sit with her own thoughts and try to figure out what she should do now. It was inevitable, she was going to have to go over there, plaster a smile on her face and make her excuses.

So she did, but not before she took another deep breath, before she zipped up her coat as far as it would go and she folded her arms across her chest, a feeble attempt to protect herself from their prying. She did love her extended family, more then she could have ever thought possible and a rib crushing hug, followed by the buzz of the close family life would have been perfection on any other day, but today she needed to be alone, her brain needed quiet.

She walked at a fast pace towards the group, a smile she was unable to make genuine filled her features as she let the older couple pull her into an embrace. She let herself bask in the warm familiarity of it for a while, a new feeling of wanting to stay like this rose up in her, a want to be mothered and told everything would be okay suddenly washed over her, but she knew the feeling wouldn't last and she had to leave the station alone. She reluctantly pulled away from them both and looked towards them sadly.

"I hate to do this, but I have to go." Her voice was shaky, but stern.

The group spoke their shock and displeasure with her leaving, their mixed voices going unheard by Hermione, her mind already made up. Harry spoke up.

"Are you sure? We were hoping to go to the Leaky Cauldron and catch up on a few drinks, share some horror stories of our kids." Hermione could tell by his tone that he had expected this, expected her to go out on her own after saying goodbye, but he couldn't help trying regardless. Hermione looked towards her old friends, her eyes full of guilt ready to apologise when Ginny beat her to it, the red head more hopeful than her husband.

"Oh, come on Hermione!" She exclaimed, her hand gripping Harry's inner elbow. "We haven't seen each other for ages; it'd be good to catch up."

Hermione bit onto the inside of her cheek, hating how much she needed this, needed her quiet.

"I'm sorry Ginny, I really am. I just have an appointment I couldn't get out of and you know how these big companies hate cancellations, I can't afford to lose this contract." She hoped they would buy it, they had to.

Ginny nodded sadly, seemingly believing Hermione's dilemma and quickly made arrangements to see her tomorrow with an added threat of a Bat Bogey Hex if she didn't turn up. Hermione laughed fondly towards her sister-in-law as she waved goodbye fondly over her shoulder. Her steps quickened the closer she moved to the exit, she shoved her hands into her pockets and kept her head down, not wanting to make eye contact with anybody on her way out and be forced to tell more lies, her skin still crawling from her chat with before. She hated lying to those closest to her, she would think it unforgiveable if she found out her loved ones had lied to her, but they would understand wouldn't they? Her need to be alone, her minds need to figure itself out without distraction.

She had finally reached the exit, a shaky sigh leaving her mouth as the September air hit her. It was an eerie feeling, the busy street full of muggles going about their day, not knowing about the secret goodbyes she had just witnessed and unaware of how empty she felt. She looked up and down the street, her eyes narrowing slightly when she saw a sign for a café. Deciding that it was an ideal place she started walking, oblivious to a blue pair of eyes watching her every move from the train station entrance, the man's elegant fingers buttoning up the expensive fabric protecting him from the harsh autumn weather. Draco Malfoy watched as she walked up to the café and stop abruptly at the window displays, eyeing up the menu offers plastered all over it. Her hands were resting on the doors handle as she considered her options, with a barely there nod of her head she pushed open the solid metal door and he lost sight of her. He didn't moved for a few seconds, his head tilting with intrigue as he waited to see if she would change her mind and come walking back out any minute now, but she didn't and he smiled before sauntering up to the café's entrance himself.

He glanced briefly in Hermione's direction when he entered, glad that she had chosen an isolated booth away from the other patrons. Her choice of seating would have made it hard for him to observe her, but he was never one for sitting in a café and stalking a woman as she drank a hot drink. He walked to the counter and ordered himself a black coffee, preferring to wait instead of having it brought over. He noticed that Hermione was holding tightly onto a child's scarf, most likely the one she was saying goodbye to today. She was staring at it intently, occasionally brushing her fingertips over the wool as she nibbled her bottom lip. He turned back to the counter just as his coffee was placed in front of him, the worker offering him a smile full of fake happiness and contempt for his minimum wage job.

"Thank you." He spoke, before picking up his coffee and turning back towards Hermione.

She still hadn't noticed he was here and he was glad, always happy when he could make an entrance, finding it to be far too delightful when he dropped in on someone unannounced. He walked without hesitation to Hermione's table and sat down, the girl in front of him jumping at the sudden presence before looking up with a shocked expression at the man opposite her. Draco couldn't help but smirk, finding her unease amusing.

"Hello, Granger."

I'd like to point out that this story is going to be a slow burner in the beginning, personally I like the chase between Hermione and Draco and I don't want to rush their relationship, when it would just seem very unrealistic to do so.

I hope you guys like this chapter feel free to review and let me know what you think


	4. Chapter 4

Hermione gasped, swore to herself and clutched the folded scarf to her chest. She stared dumbfounded at the blonde across from her, gaping like a fish.

"Do close your mouth, Granger. You'll catch flies." He drawled, smirking when she quickly snapped her jaw shut.

She fixed an annoyed frown onto her face before gently placing the scarf onto her lap and out of his sight. She clenched her jaw and brought her hands back into view by crossing her arms defiantly as she looked at him.

"Malfoy, are you lost?" It was a genuine question.

Draco merely smiled at her and flexed his left hand, his gloved fingers creaking in the expensive leather as he unnecessarily fixed the cufflinks on his sleeve with his right. Arrogance virtually oozed out of his pores and Hermione suddenly felt the urge to pour her boiling cup of tea onto his lap, just to watch his composure dissolve. After an intense internal monologue, her better judgment finally won and she refrained from injuring him; instead she tapped idly against the cheap plastic of the café's table and watched him, boredom clear in her eyes.

After what felt like an eternity, Draco finally shifted his position. He sat up straight, his posture stiff from years of old fashioned etiquette drilled into him since birth and she found that from her angle he was practically looking down his nose at her.

"I have a proposition for you." He began; Hermione immediately perked up and gave him her full attention.

"No." She replied without hesitation.

"No? You have not even heard-"

"I don't need to." She shrugged.

"Miss Granger, I hardly-"

"No."

"Will you please stop interrupting me?" He snapped, his voice higher than he had intended. His nostrils were flared and he had to take a moment to compose himself once more, the frizzy haired witch opposite him was messing with his plans.

"Is that all?" Hermione asked as her eyebrow quirked. She was ready to jump up at any moment and leave Draco's company, but the know-it-all inside of her was curious. She turned away from him and placed her daughters scarf into her handbag, readying herself to stand and leave.

"Miss Granger, please." She heard Draco speak quietly.

His voice took her by surprise, she'd never heard Draco Malfoy plead for anything in his life and for a moment she wondered if she had misheard him. She turned her head and gazed at him with contemplation over her shoulder, he had a look of mild desperation on his face and one that was trying it's hardest to be buried by his self-preservation.

He looked as though he was about to speak again, but she beat him to it. With a firm grip on her handbag, she turned to face him for the last time; hoping her tone would leave him with no doubt that she was done with this.

"Whatever you need Malfoy, find somebody else." She held her hand up in an attempt to dismiss the conversation; she didn't want to be in his presence anymore.

"Granger…" He started, but Hermione had already stood up and was making her way out of the café. Draco watched her go, his jaw tense and he was almost tempted to go after her, force her to listen, but he refrained for today. He settled in his chair with his cold, dreadful coffee and thought about his next move concerning the stubborn Gryffindor.

Hermione mumbled obscenities under her breath as she stepped outside, the autumn air hit her skin and her anger seemed to dissolve somewhat under the cool breeze. Buttoning up her coat, she turned right and walked as fast as she could, without drawing attention, down the busy street full of weekend shoppers. She didn't once look over her shoulder; instead her eyes were scanning every shop she passed, hoping to find an alley or an alcove. It took a whole five minutes, but eventually she found one that wasn't otherwise preoccupied with deliveries or staff members who revelled in the quiet cigarette break before they had to return to their minimum wage jobs.

She glanced around and slipped her hand into her handbag, gripping the vine wand hidden inside. With her head held high and a quick turn on her heel, she stepped into the alleyway without hesitation. Before she could blink, she had her wand out and immediately felt the familiar tug of apparition and a second later she arrived safely back home and traipsed into the living room.

"That arse!" She hissed bitterly and threw her bag onto the nearest table, almost knocking over an expensive vase in the process. She sighed and sunk down onto the couch, still in her coat. She chewed on the inside of her cheek and let her eyes wander around the front room. The plush leather couch she was sat on took up most of the space; it was one of their first big purchases after they had bought the place. The black leather felt as though it was smothering you, in a good way of course. The small, flat screen television that Ron was reluctant to buy now sat pride of place in front of the couch, and ironically Ron had spent many nights watching it and forcing Hermione to put up with his new love for rugby. One of the walls was ceiling high with book cases; the one thing Hermione had absolutely insisted on was immediate access to her favourite literature and not just keeping them stuck in her study. Ron had tried to put his foot down, but when she reminded him of his change of heart over the television he finally relented.

Hermione wasn't one for having a lot of art in her home; instead she had an array of family photographs above the brick fireplace, including a papier-mâché of Rose's small hand from primary school. She smiled sadly at it for a moment and then her smile dropped. She stood up suddenly and went to her disguarded handbag, pulling her daughters scarf out and holding it close to her chest. She couldn't believe that she had been so caught up in her anger at Malfoy, that she'd had forgotten what she had just lost, the most important thing in the world to her. Her little girl wasn't here anymore, Hermione couldn't stop the tears from spilling onto her cheeks and she fell once more onto the couch, burying her nose into the small scarf.

Draco apparated into the entrance of the manor about twenty minutes after Hermione herself had left. He had almost run after her, wanting to drag her here with him and make her listen to his offer, but it would only make matters worse he concluded. He tore open his black winter coat and handed it roughly to the waiting house elf. He didn't utter a word to the creature, his retreating steps almost all the way upstairs by the time the elf had removed the coat from covering its face. His stride was long as he neared his mother's bedroom; he stopped short, took one long breath in and knocked. It took a few moments, but he eventually heard it, his mother's quiet voice telling him to enter. He nodded and let himself in. "Mother." He greeted briefly before sitting down in the chair next to her bed. Without hesitating, he reached out and gripped her pale hand.

"How did your meeting go?" Narcissa asked, her voice strained and quiet.

"It went fine, mother. I just have some final details I need to iron out." Draco replied his eyes cloudy with unshed tears. He brought Narcissa's hand to his lips and kissed her palm, the coolness of her skin did not go unnoticed.

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_I hope you guys liked this, I know my grammar/puntuation is most likely terrible, but I don't have a beta and no one I know would proof read this for me. No one even knows I write FF or run my allthingsfeltson blog, so it'd be awkward. _

_Please feel free to leave reviews, I love constructive criticism and it's nice to hear your opinions :D_


	5. Chapter 5

_This chapter is in Ron's POV. Personally, I have no strong opinions of Ron, but I didn't want this story to be Ron-bashing. So, for me I want to put forward both of their sides of the marriage. _

_PS, this was written with far too much wine and I have no beta so if there is any mistakes, I can only apologise in advance and I will make sure to go over it at a later date._

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Ron stumbled roughly through the fireplace, he hated using the Floo network after he'd had a few drinks, but it was less risky than apparating in his mind anyway. He coughed in an attempt to clear the irritation from his throat and brushed the excess powder from his cloak as his eyes adjusted to the darkness of their living room. He made a move to sit onto the couch and pull his shoes off, but he was stopped by the slowly sharpening image of Hermione fast asleep and curled up on the couch. She was still in her clothes from dropping Rose off at the station, apart from her coat and shoes which were in a pile on the floor below her. In her arms she clutched a scarf he recognised as their daughters. He took some time and just watched her sleeping, her chest moving up and down with each breath. He hadn't just looked at her in the longest time and all he could think about was how different she looked. Not in any bad way, she was still as beautiful as the day they got married, but she had changed before his eyes and he hadn't noticed until now. The thought troubled him, how could he not notice the small changes in his wife's appearance, her hair was just that big longer, she had lines around her eyes from the years of laughter. He untied his cloak and gently laid it onto an adjoining chair before walking softly over to his sleeping wife, quietly sitting on the coffee table in front of her, whilst being careful not to knock over the television. He ran a hand through his hair and ran his eyes over the woman he'd spent most of his life with. He had a sudden feeling in the pit of his stomach, not one of pure love as he was expecting, but of sadness. If anybody asked him if he loved his wife, he wouldn't hesitate to declare it from the rooftops, because he did. He did love Hermione, but not in the way he knew she needed to be loved.

He could remember the feeling of being head over heels about her, the emotions he felt when she brought their beautiful child into this world and he wanted nothing more than to kiss her deeply and never let go. He remembered that lightness in his chest when Rose was five and refusing to let go of her mother as they dropped her off for her first day of Primary school. He held Hermione's hand tightly in his own as they watched their little girl walk tentatively off into the classroom. He had wiped away his wife's tears with such care and love that day that he knew she felt it. She had smiled appreciatively up at him and gave him such a loving kiss he wondered how he'd ever gotten so lucky in his life. Ron couldn't remember the last time he had felt that close with Hermione.

They only ever seemed to kiss when he left for work, nothing more than a peck on the lips and a passing touch or hug, which she would often cut short. There were days when he woke up and saw her brewing her morning tea and something inside urged him to walk up behind her and wrap him arms around her and kiss her neck, something that used to make her melt, but nowadays it felt like an empty gesture, as though he were forcing the interaction on a friend. He knew that they had gotten too comfortable and a routine had formed, they hadn't had sex in nearly a month and he for one was missing it and always wondered if he put her off somehow. He looked down at his stomach, patting it gently with his hands. He wasn't fat, but he had lost all the muscles he'd gained when he played Quidditch at Hogwarts. Sure, he had a few more wrinkles and his hair wasn't as thick as it used to be, but he wouldn't say he was repulsive.

He froze then when he heard movement from the couch, Hermione rolled onto her back, her hand falling over the side of the couch and the scarf dropping to the floor. Ron sighed and picked it up, holding it up to his nose and smelling his wife and daughter's scents on it together, his little family. He looked back at Hermione and gently put the scarf next to him on the coffee table as he moved to kneel in front of her. His hand came up and he brushed some of her wayward curls behind her ear, careful not to wake her. He wished more than anything that he could feel for Hermione the love that he used to. He had always dreamed of having more children like his parents, an army of redheaded children in a noisy home. He and Hermione hadn't discussed it properly, but he had always assumed that's how they would have ended up, old and happy with a silly amount of kids and an even sillier amount of grandkids to fawn over in their retirement. At times he would image the future they would have together, but the closer he got to it, the less enthused he was. He knew their marriage was one of comfort and familiarity now, but a big part of Ron wanted to get that old feeling back. The old passion they both used to share when it came to one another, the way he'd come home from work and be pounced on by Hermione, him refusing to let go because they just needed to be near to each other.

He gently cupped her cheek and brushed his thumb across her lips, before leaning forward and kissing them, just gently enough that she wouldn't be woken up. Deciding to let her sleep and not to disturb her, Ron stood up from the floor and grabbed the throw that lay over the top of the couch, pulling it down and over Hermione's sleeping form. He gave her one last look and finally made his way to their bedroom. Kicking off his shoes at the bottom of the bed, he sighed and rubbed his tired face. He didn't know whether it was the booze that was still swirling around his head, but something in his marriage needed to change and soon. He couldn't live in the rut they were currently in and he was sure that Hermione herself couldn't either. He felt the irritation of their day to day lives coming from her and maybe here could be a way to fix it and go back to how they once were? Either way, he knew he had to try. He sloppily went to brush his teeth and finally slipped out of his clothes, with less ease then he would have had if he were sober and crawled under the bed covers, making a vow with himself to start tomorrow as a new day for himself and Hermione.

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_I hope you enjoyed this chapter and I'm sorry for the slow update, but my retail job is hectic this time of year and in a way I sort of lost my muse as well, but I'm back full force and I'm already writing the next chapter. Feel free to leave feedback, I love hearing from you guys _


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